Running in Circles, but with Better Scenery

I apologize for not keeping up with this blog very much thus far. I know you all understand, though, that being a full-time student doesn’t give me much free time to actually write for pleasure.

Anyway, I left you all hanging at the point when Bobby, Andria, and I all went for a run at the local high school outdoor track. It was on Sunday, Feb. 10th in the late morning/early afternoon that we went, so we had the whole track to ourselves. After we all ate Powerbars (the first one I’d ever eaten; it wasn’t bad), we headed off for our run. I ran 3.5 miles in total and it felt awesome!! I started to play my iPod and recorded the date in my workout log and then began to stretch, like usual. A few yards away, Andria immediately told me to hold it right there! She told me I should never stretch cold muscles because that only increases the chance that I’ll end up pulling a muscle. This was news to me, so I’m grateful she was there to catch my mistake! I know I still have a lot to learn about running, but thankfully I have great family and some great books from Runner’s World to learn from. :)

After fast-walking a warm-up lap (a quarter mile), I did my usual stretches with Andria, including a couple new ones she taught me. Then I took off with my usual routine of run/walk/run. I don’t have any specifics about my pace or anything – like I said I’m really just starting out. I did the first mile in 15 minutes, the second in 16 minutes, and then the third in 14 minutes. All the times are according to my good ‘ol cell phone clock (no runner’s watch yet). What was cool was that my third mile was the fastest one, and during the last lap I was really into a great running grove.

Part of what made the run so great was all the new factors that were introduced – new shoes, new socks, a new bra, and it was my first time running outdoors. The shoes and the bra were awesome but the socks actually weren’t so great. They were thicker than the usual socks I wear, so they felt pretty weird. Also, doing the run outdoors was a lot of fun. For one thing the scenery was much more interesting than running around indoor tracks! The wind was also pretty intense, and this added a whole new element to the run. It sped me up and slowed me down at times, so it was a fun challenge. More than this, it was just great to be outside in the fresh air. Those who know me know how much I love bring outdoors and enjoying nature, so now this whole running thing is a new way to do that. :)

Finally, I walked a quarter mile cooldown lap, stretched again, and by then we headed towards the car. After getting home and showering, we filled our bellies with yummy barbeque from a great place in town. (We figured we should eat lunch while our metabolism was good and high).

That’s it for now, stay tuned for another post!

Hayley